Gambler tied to golfer Phil Mickelson gets 5 years in prison

NEW YORK (AP) A Las Vegas gambler linked to golfer Phil Mickelson has been sentenced to five years in prison for his federal conviction on insider trading charges.

William ''Billy'' Walters was sentenced Thursday in New York by Judge P. Kevin Castel. Walters smiled after the sentencing, hugged his wife and friends but declined comment.

The 71-year-old owner of auto dealerships, car rental agencies and golf courses was convicted in April in Manhattan federal court of making more than $40 million illegally trading the stock of Dallas-based Dean Foods Co.

Prosecutors relied in part on testimony from former Dean Foods board chairman Thomas Davis to win a conviction. Mickelson did not testify at the trial.

The government said Mickelson earned nearly $1 million after Walters told him to buy Dean Foods stock in 2012.